Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Sun Jun 08, 2014 4:14 am

Today's harvest, swiss chard - leaves have way fewer holes in them thanks to judicious use of diatomaceous earth. a couple turnips to open up more light for the beets, first tomatoes of the year!, the last cauliflower because I caught an earwig touching it, a couple onions - finally bulbing for real, and some very cool carrots... the yellow and white ones were really sweet.

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Mon Jun 09, 2014 7:45 pm

Following yesterday, we have our first mulberry harvest ...and more cherries and wild strawberries (big ones are Seascape) and a few more shelling peas from the early planting in the patio windowboxes. I put the peas in the bowl with the fruits because these are received with equal enthusiasm by the kids.

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 12:48 am

Tomatoes are coming off in force now. Froze about 8-10 pounds over the past couple of days and started drying 4-5 pounds today. Squash and cucumbers are being harvested much faster than we can eat them. Perhaps will make some pickles this year. Harvested first egg plant today. JalapeÃ±os and bell peppers are now covering our daily needs. Green beens and corn are about ten days away.

Eclectic gardening style, drawing from 45 years of interest and experience. Mostly plant in raised beds and containers primarily using intensive gardening techniques.Alex

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 12:51 am

hendi_alex wrote:Tomatoes are coming off in force now. Froze about 8-10 pounds over the past couple of days and started drying 4-5 pounds today. Squash and cucumbers are being harvested much faster than we can eat them. Perhaps will make some pickles this year. Harvested first egg plant today. JalapeÃ±os and bell peppers are now covering our daily needs. Green beens and corn are about ten days away.

What is your process on freezing tomatoes? Peel and bag, or do you use heat in any way?

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 1:21 am

Peel, chop with ring cutter in sauce pan, bring to a simmer for a minute or two, set pan in ice bath, freeze in rectangular pyrex dishes. Run hot water on bottom of container and pry out block of tomatoes. Wrap in plastic and place several in a gallon freezer bag. Last year we used similarly prepared tomatoes in soups and sauces and the were oh so much better than any from cans! I also prepare and freeze marinara which holds up very well and makes for a quick meal. This year we are buying a small dedicated freezer to extend the season mostly for tomatoes, but also for greens, corn, okra, blueberries, and perhaps a bit more.

Eclectic gardening style, drawing from 45 years of interest and experience. Mostly plant in raised beds and containers primarily using intensive gardening techniques.Alex

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 3:43 pm

Had my first real multi-veggie meal. We had been eating lots of lettuce, kale, collards, and broccoli, but tonight we had an Asian inspired stir fry with broccoli, onion (bulb and green), and peas (young, in pods) - all from the garden - with ribeye steak, carrots, and celery.

Still have as much lettuce as we can eat, and it looks like we'll be picking squash within the week.

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 3:55 pm

We now are in full swing of what I consider the summer garden. For us most evening meals consist of about 70%-80% home grown. We never get tired of such meals, and always are sad to see them go in the late fall. Winter time, we probably drop down to about 20% home grown, but with this year's use of the freezer, perhaps can move that up to closer to 40%. We try to have at least something from our yard/garden every day of the year. So far in the winter that has amounted to frozen tomatoes, fresh greens, garlic, and frozen blueberries.

Eclectic gardening style, drawing from 45 years of interest and experience. Mostly plant in raised beds and containers primarily using intensive gardening techniques.Alex

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 5:46 pm

Repeat of yesterday... Basically doubled.... More mulberries!

I have an old woven nylon shower curtain that gets used for various garden duties. Right now, it's a mulberry harvesting sheet. I spread it under the tree and grab the nearest branch and shake vigorously. Pick up a few that missed the curtain and fell in the grass, move the sheet and repeat. I can only reach about five branches from the ground. If I want to be more serious about harvesting, I have to cover three times the area with floating covers, etc. and stand on a picnic bench to reach higher branches.

As it is, today's harvest was about 2X yesterday's. It's a good thing because the kids ate nearly all of yesterday's. Any berries that don't get eaten are frozen akin zip bags and when we have a bagful, we start making fruit smoothies.

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 7:31 pm

We love mulberries. We had two small but producing trees through this spring. But our Illinois ever-bearing died down to the graft union. Will buy two new trees next season. Will try some of the more exotic large fruited.

Eclectic gardening style, drawing from 45 years of interest and experience. Mostly plant in raised beds and containers primarily using intensive gardening techniques.Alex

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Tue Jun 10, 2014 8:01 pm

hendi_alex wrote:Peel, chop with ring cutter in sauce pan, bring to a simmer for a minute or two, set pan in ice bath, freeze in rectangular pyrex dishes. Run hot water on bottom of container and pry out block of tomatoes. Wrap in plastic and place several in a gallon freezer bag. Last year we used similarly prepared tomatoes in soups and sauces and the were oh so much better than any from cans! I also prepare and freeze marinara which holds up very well and makes for a quick meal. This year we are buying a small dedicated freezer to extend the season mostly for tomatoes, but also for greens, corn, okra, blueberries, and perhaps a bit more.

I freeze tomatoes two ways:I peel, de-core and cut regular size tomatoes into quarters, put in gallon zip lock, seal and freeze. Use these for any recipe calling for tomatoes, but especially homemade chili. Still trying to duplicate Wendys' chili

I peel, de-core and cut tomatoes into smaller units, slice about half as much okra, cook until boiling, cool, and freeze in zip locks. This stock I use for vegetable soup in the winter time. The veggie soup includes several items frozen from the garden: tomatoes/okra, sweet corn, bell pepper, sometimes green beans. It also includes venison from deer killed on the property. So 85% is harvested within quarter mile of my house.

I am convinced that the "freshly frozen" tomatoes adds more flavor to items and any other ingredient.

Re: What are you harvesting -Spring 2014

Sat Jun 14, 2014 2:18 pm

Harvested all the spinach which was bolting, used some and froze a bunch. I left a few plants to see if they would re-seed themselves.

Harvested a bunch of broccoli, likewise used some and froze some. There is still a bit more to come and some side heads, but I've started pulling the first plants to make room for tomatoes and peppers.

Harvested and froze a bunch of cilantro and celery.

Harvested and dried parsley, dill, chamomile.

Eating lots of swiss chard. Eating a few baby carrots to thin them.

Harvested garlic scapes and made garlic scape pasta carbonara (adding onions, spinach, broccoli from the garden to the recipe).

Plan to make home made mint chocolate chip ice cream today with the mint that is going crazy....